Friends of WWOZ, Inc. Governance Board Meeting General Manager’s Report Wednesday, October 8, 2014
1. Membership. In August 2014, WWOZ received $18,800 in member donations, a revenue decrease of 36% over August 2013. 1,103 individual members donated to WWOZ during the month, an increase of 6% compared to the number of donors active during August 2013. 1,009 sustaining members donated a total of $14,981 in August 2014 (80% of all revenue), and 587 members from out of state contributed $10,715 (57% of all revenue). By comparison, in August 2013, WWOZ received $29,429 from 1,039 donors, including $13,174 from 824 sustaining members (45% of all revenue), and $16,230 from 573 out-of-state members (55% of all revenue). The WWOZ fall 2014 Membership Drive will take place is slated for November 4-14, 2014. Member gifts will include a calendar featuring Mardi Gras Indian Queens and a tote bag featuring art by Isabelle Jacopin. The fall Drive will also have a theme: the women of New Orleans and their contributions to the culture and the music of the city.
2. Underwriting. In August 2014, WWOZ generated $13,144 in underwriting and sponsorship revenue, compared to revenue of $4,000 in July 2013 (an increase of 229%). Sponsor Services signed four new underwriting agreements in September 2014: Loyola University's Montage Fine Arts Series; the French Market Farmer's Market, Bowery Presents “South for the Preservation Hall Ball” at The Civic Theatre, BBR Creative for Cajun Country Rice. WWOZ signed a sponsorship agreement with Valentino Hospitality Enterprises for “New Orleans Calling Live from Basin Street Station” and media sponsorship/trade agreements with the New Orleans Film Festival, LifeCity Sustainability Partnership, and the New Orleans Swing Dance Festival.
3. WWOZ Swamp Shop. Swamp Shop revenue totaled $4,361.30 for September 2014, compared to $1,332.75 in September 2013, an increase of 227%. The Swamp Shop retail location accounted for 40%, of September 2014 sales. Swamp Shop merchandise was sold at the Bogalusa Blues & Heritage Festival on September 27, 2014.
4. Major Giving. In July 2014, Major Giving received $0, compared to revenue of $3,360 in July 2013. The inaugural “WWOZ Hi-Fi Club” cultivation event at the House of Blues on September 18, 2014. The next “WWOZ Hi-Fi Happy Hour” will take place on Thursday, December 11, 2014. WWOZ and The New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Foundation have partnered to stage the first annual Brass Menagerie Parade and Brass Ball for the benefit of WWOZ on November 8, 2014 at the Michalopoulos Studios in the Marigny. A Krewe of WWOZ will participate in the parade. Major Giving has also scheduled a cultivation event in the San Francisco Bay area at Wente Vineyards, the oldest continuously operating, family-owned winery in California, on November 15, 2014, in conjunction with a to-be-announced musical performance.
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Friends of WWOZ, Inc. Governance Board Meeting General Manager’s Report Wednesday, October 8, 2014
5. Marketing & Development. The October 2014 issue of OffBeat magazine featured a full-page, full-color version display advertisement of the featuring WWOZ “Guardian of the Groove” Irma Thomas. On September 17, 2014, New America Media published a multimedia report on the push for arts education in New Orleans on its website. The report included photographs and interview excerpts featuring various participants in WWOZ’s Cuttin’ Class series, as well as an interview with WWOZ Development Director Crystal Gross. New America Media is a collaboration of 3,000 ethnic news organizations across the U.S.
6. Outreach. WWOZ Outreach hosted two events aimed at recruiting potential listeners, volunteers, interns, and members from among New Orleans’ student population, on September 9, 2014 at Tulane University and on October 2, 2014 at the University of New Orleans. On September 13, 2014, WWOZ had a large outreach presence at the annual Bay Bridgefest in Bay St Louis, MS. On September 27, 2014, we had major presence at the Third Annual Bogalusa Blues & Heritage Festival, enlarging our mailing list with a raffle and handing out promotional items, including “Guardian of the Groove” church-style fans and WWOZ plastic cups.
7. New Media. WWOZ posted a live HD video stream of performances by Ruthie Foster and Big George Brock at the Bogalusa using the Ustream video streaming platform. Ustream supports both desktop and mobile viewing. WWOZ will also live stream performances at the Crescent City Blues & BBQ Festival on October 18-19. 2014. The New Media Team is collaborating with StreamGuys, Inc. to create a two- week archive of WWOZ radio shows, for on-demand listening.
8. 2014 RAIN Awards. WWOZ was named “Best Streaming Broadcast Station” at the Fifth Annual RAIN Internet Radio Awards on September 8, 2014. RAIN (Radio & Internet News) published information and commentary about the future of radio and the emergence of streaming audio. RAIN was started in 1999 by Kurt Hanson, founder of AccuRadio, a pioneering Internet radio platform. The RAIN Awards honor excellence in five categories, covering pureplay streaming, broadcast webcasting, international excellence, digital strategy, and the best overall online radio service. A 10-member panel of industry peers evaluated 33 finalists across the five categories. WWOZ tied for “Best Streaming Broadcast Station” with KING-FM, a classical music station in Seattle.
9. New Orleans Calling Live From Basin Street Station Production Agreement. On September 19, 2014, WWOZ and Valentino Hospitality Enterprises agreed to produce of series of live musical events tentatively entitled New Orleans Calling Live from Basin St. Station, featuring intimate musical performances and artist interviews with 16 New Orleans musical acts, two per event, over a period of two years. The events will take place on the top floor of Basin St Station in New Orleans.
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Friends of WWOZ, Inc. Governance Board Meeting General Manager’s Report Wednesday, October 8, 2014
10. 2014 Public Radio Programming Conference. Program Director Dwayne Breashears, Assistant to the Program Director Russell Shelton, Sponsor Services Representative Melanie Merz, and New Orleans Calling co-Producer George Ingmire attended the 2014 Public Radio Programming Conference in Portland, OR, sponsored by the Public Radio Program Directors Association. The WWOZ team was able to discuss syndication opportunities for the New Orleans Calling program series with program directors from stations across the U.S. Among other events, the WWOZ team attended a training session entitled “The Authentic Voice” and a group discussion on the state of the jazz radio in the U.S.
11. MusicHood. General Manager David Freedman, Dwayne Breashears, and Sponsor Services Representative Melanie Merz attended the first MusicHood meet-up in Portland, OR on September 13, 2014. MusicHood is collective of music-centric public radio stations across the U.S. that plans to create a national platform in order to enhance programming and technological opportunities through sharing of audiences, live music content, and technical information and contacts. Participants, including representatives from KEXP in Seattle, KUT in Austin, WXPN in Philadelphia, WFMU in Jersey City, Oregon Public Broadcasting, Wisconsin Public Radio, Minnesota Public Radio, and the Public Radio Exchange, discussed possible collaborative projects and the development of a MusicHood app.
12. WWOZ Fiscal Year Change. Effective in 2014, WWOZ’s fiscal year will begin on September 1 instead of July 1. The change was approved by the Finance Committee of the WWOZ Board of Directors and was announced at the WWOZ Board’s August 13, 2014 meeting. WWOZ’s fiscal year will now be identical to that of The New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival & Foundation.
13. In-Studio Guests and Performances.
September 1, 2014: Ainsley Matich, Jeff Klein, Allen Dejan, Robin Boudreaux, Mario Abney, Doctor Jimbo Walsh, Brian Cogan, Jane Salton, Andrew McClean, Jonathan Freilich, Marissa Joseph September 3, 2014: Chris Finney, Kristina Morales, Ted Boasso September 4, 2014: Jane Harvey Brown, Emanuel Lain, Travis “Trumpet Black” Hill, Raynold Fenelon September 7, 2014: Effie Michot, Cecile Monteyne, Alex Ares September 8, 2014: Aron Lambert, Eva Sohl, Gretchen Zalkind, Marc Adams, Chris Notte, Dawne Massey, Tippy Tippers, Katie Murphy, Justin Shiels September 9, 2014 Cherie Pitre, Jay Pennington, Matt Russell, King Khan, Vockah Redu, Christal White, Ken Vandermark September 11, 2014: Richard Mayer, Leroy Jones, Jamal Batiste, David Batiste, Sr.
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Friends of WWOZ, Inc. Governance Board Meeting General Manager’s Report Wednesday, October 8, 2014
13. In-Studio Guests and Performances (cont).
September 12, 2014 Amy Kirk, Ingrid Lucia, Renee Johnson, Cheryl Salahuddin, Maggie Tidwell, Diane Lundeen, Vicki & Susan Psycho, Andreux & the Sea of Sounds, Adam Baumol, Wes Anderson IV, Jared Castellaw September 14, 2014: Naydja Cojoe September 15, 2014: Sarah Borealis, Lily Keber, Aron Lambert, Travers Geoffray September 16, 2014: Ira Padros, Sophie Lvoff, Bert Cotton, Greg Hicks, Billie Davies September 17, 2014: Leandra Shipps, Debbie Davis, Deacon John September 18, 2014: Taeko Yokoyama, Al Huntley, Ivan Neville September 19, 2014: Annie Robichaux, Anthony Cuccia, Brent Johnson, Eddie Roberts September 22, 2014: Kaya Martinez, Nadja Kojoe, Lefty Parker, Louie Branson, Jimbo Walsh, Kevin and Luke O’Day, James Corbin September 24, 2014: Wesley Griffin, Papa Mali, Peter Morris, Christian Galle, Cecelia Llompart, Devi K. Lockwood, Christopher Stuadinger, Laura Manning September 25, 2014: Laura Manning, Ben Harwood, Rashaad Collins, Chief Smiley Ricks September 26, 2014: Ryan Shapiro, Kelcy Wilburn, Nic LeFebvre, Danielle Ryce September 27, 2014: Jose Fermin Ceballos, Carolina Hernandez September 29, 2014: Dana Reed, Holly Sheib September 30, 2014: Ukelele Jake, Linda Seabright, Kim Carson, Jason Patterson
14. Live Remote Broadcasts.
September 27, 2014 Big George Brock and Ruthie Foster Bogalusa Blues & Heritage Festival Cassidy Park, Bogalusa, LA
15. Upcoming Live Remote Broadcasts.
Monday, October 13, 2014 8:00pm Artists TBD MaCCNO Second Anniversary Benefit Party Presented by the Music and Culture Coalition Café Istanbul, New Orleans
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Friends of WWOZ, Inc. Governance Board Meeting General Manager’s Report Wednesday, October 8, 2014
15. Upcoming Live Remote Broadcasts (cont).
Saturday, October 18, 2014 & Sunday, October 19, 2014
Artists TBD Crescent City Blues & BBQ Festival Presented by the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Foundation Lafayette Square, New Orleans
16. Press.
The Times-Picayune/NOLA.com: “Glass quilt a touching memorial for victims of Sandy Hook” Sheila Stroup, October 4, 2014
“‘What I really wanted to do was to make something to represent the loss, but make it so pretty you would be touched by it and wouldn't be able to look away,’ [Patti Muller] says. Muller calls her backyard with the cottage and covered patio her ‘chapel of glass,’ her place to unwind at the end of her workday. ‘I come out here and turn on WWOZ,’ she says. ‘I don't even bring my phone with me. It's my little happy place.’
Esquire.com: “The Politics Blog: Out on the Weekend” Charles P. Pierce, September 26, 2014
“This Week's WWOZ Pick To Click: ‘Big Butter And Egg Man’ by Sweet Emma Barrett. And, yeah, I still pretty much love New Orleans.”
NolaVie.com: “Concert Recap: Dr. John and the Nite Trippers at the Joy Theater” Shane Colman, September 24, 2014
“The Louis Armstrong tribute album was released about a month ago, making it a bit of a stretch to call last weekend’s show a ‘record release show;’ we must have been told about the new record at least ten times, all within in an hour. Shameless promotion aside, the plugs for the new record would have been much more bearable without long-winded introductions between every other song by emcees from WWOZ.”
WWL-TV/wwltv.com: “NCIS going for an authentic New Orleans experience” Natalie Shepherd, September 17, 2014
“‘Obviously, what hits you is the wrought iron, the notion of courtyard, right. The feeling of inside and outside,’ said production designer Victoria Paul. Paul captures the local feel with little touches – a WWOZ sticker on the fridge, Crystal Hot Sauce on the shelf, Page 5 of 6
Friends of WWOZ, Inc. Governance Board Meeting General Manager’s Report Wednesday, October 8, 2014 antique Mardi Gras posters, and even a vintage Hubig's sign.”
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